Cytology Services

Cytology Services

Cytology is an important part of pathology which is used for the routine screening of cervical samples and diagnostic applications.

The introduction of Liquid Based Cytology (LBC) has resulted in many changes such as the implementation of Automated Imaging and molecular tests including Human Papillomavirus Virus (HPV) which is now used as 'triage' and 'test of cure' within the screening programme.

SurePath™ has been used within the National Health Service Cervical Screening Programme (NHSCSP) since 2003 and is the LBC system of choice in over 50% of cytology laboratories in the UK. The technology is manufactured by Becton Dickinson and distributed by Source BioScience throughout the UK and Ireland.

FocalPoint™ is the only approved Automated Imaging system in England and Wales and includes No Further Review (NFR), a feature which allows up to 25% of slides to be archived without a further manual primary screen. This provides significant benefits to the laboratory such as meeting the required turnaround times of 14 days and addressing shortages of primary screening staff due to retirement or laboratory mergers.

SurePath™ LBC compliments the use of other adjunctive tests such as HPV testing.

Cervical cytology services at Source BioScience

Source BioScience has been supplying the SurePath™ screening technology to the NHSCSP since 2003. Approximately 50% of all cervical cancer screening tests in England and Wales are collected, processed and clinically reported using this technology. We provide all consumables, equipment, training and technical support for this service.

A unique feature of the FocalPoint™ automated cytology imaging platform is No Further Review (NFR) which allows the laboratory to archive up to 25% of the slides without the requirement of a full manual screen. This provides significant cost benefits and facilitates the demands of the 14 day turnaround time.